Navalny’s key ally attacked with hammer outside his home in Lithuania in ‘horror assault ordered by Putin’

ALEXEI Navalny’s long-time ally was brutally attacked with a hammer outside his home in Lithuania in a horror assault said to have been ordered by Vladimir Putin.

Leonid Volkov, who served as the late opposition leader’s chief of staff in 2018, was rushed to hospital after suffering injuries to his head and legs.

Volkov, 43, was attacked while he was sitting in his car last night, with the unknown assailant smashing his window before spraying tear gas into his eyes.

The brutal attacker then hit Volkov with a hammer 15 times in what the Lithuanian President described as a “pre-planned” assault carried out by Putin’s cronies.

Hours before the brutal attack, Volkov had said he and other exiles feared for their lives and knew Putin could kill them at any time.

He said: "They know that Putin not only kills people inside Russia, he also kills people outside Russia. We live in very dark times."

Hours after issuing the sinister warning, Volkov was attacked outside his home in Vilnius.

Kira Yarmysh, a former spokesperson of Navalny, said: "His car window was broken and tear gas was sprayed in his eyes, after which the attacker began hitting Leonid with a hammer.

"He started to defend himself with the car door and his legs so [the attacker] hit him wherever he could, on the legs."

Navalny's Anti-corruption Foundation, which Volkov headed until last year said that he had returned some after receiving treatment at the hospital.

It revealed that the activist is now unable to walk because of the broken bones and severe injuries caused by the hammer blows

Speaking of the assault, Volkov said: "[the attack] was an obvious, typical, gangster greeting from Putin, from bandit St Petersburg.

"[The attacker] wanted to make a schnitzel out of me.

"We will keep on working and we will not surrender."

Calling it a Russian state-sponsored attack, Lithuanian President Gitanas Nauseda said today: "The attack on Leonid Volkov was clearly pre-planned and ties in with other provocations against the Baltic nation."

Addressing Putin, the President added: "I can only say one thing to Putin - nobody is afraid of you here."

[The attack] was an obvious, typical, gangster greeting from Putin, from bandit St Petersburg

Leonid VolkovRussian Political activist

Russian opposition journalist Sergey Parkhomenko wrote on Telegram: “Volkov lives outside the city, in a quiet residential area.

"So this is not a random street hooligan or a robber. This is a man who specifically went there to attack Volkov.”

Cops have now started an investigation into the attack, which is understood to be politically motivated.

Dozens of officers with dogs and flashlights were seen searching the area around Volkov's house, which was cordoned off after the brutal assault.

Leonid Volkov has been a vocal critic who teamed up with Navalny to fight against the Kremlin.

Just like his Navalny, the activist too faced various political charges in Russia, which led him to fly out of the country fearing his own safety.

And he has been living on the outskirts of Vilnius in Lithuania ever since.

Volkov served as Navalny's chief of staff during his 2018 presidential run - and was the chairman of the Anti-corruption Foundation, which the late opposition leader founded.

The attack on Leonid Volkov was clearly pre-planned and ties in with other provocations against the Baltic nation

Gitanas NausedaPresident of Lithuania

Despite living in exile, Volkov has continued his political activism against Putin through corruption investigations and protests.

He has vowed the attack will not stop him - and called the Russian voters to join a peaceful protest on Sunday 17 - the final day of Putin's sham elections.

The protest has been called by Navalny's vengeful widow Yulia who urged Russians to unleash chaos on election day as Vladimir Putin eyes up another term.

She backed an initiative to overload polling stations as Russians head out to place their vote on the day.

Paranoid Putin

The attack on the Kremlin critic comes after a paranoid Putin ordered FSB agents to prevent Alexei Navalny’s funeral from turning into a full-scale revolt.

The worried dictator was fearful that the event would paint a picture similar to outspoken Soviet physicist Andrei Sakharov’s farewell in 1989.

Two senior sources said Navalny’s send-off “caused unrest among the country's top leadership, despite the ostentatious self-confidence demonstrated by President Vladimir Putin”.

Navalny, 47, died in Polar Wolf jail in the Russian Arctic on February 16 while serving a 19-year sentence on trumped-up extremism charges.

It was alleged his body was found covered in bruises.

Western leaders and members of his camp have since claimed he was "murdered" on the direct orders of Vladimir Putin.

At Navalny's funeral, huge crowds chanted "Russia without Putin" as the feared murdered opposition leader was lowered into a grave.

Footage from the scene showed a large crowd of people clapping and shouting Navalny's name as the hearse transporting his body arrived at the Church of the Icon of the Mother of God Soothe My Sorrows.

Mourners were heard chanting: "Putin is a killer", "We won't forget", "Freedom for political prisoners", and "Russia without Putin".

More than 1,000 people waited near the church to pay their respects to the anti-corruption activist, according to one of his allies.

Many were carrying flowers and stood in silence as uniformed officers checked documents and personal belongings before the ceremony.